Razer Blade Pro 17" (1080 GPU/late 2016) Owner's Lounge

I dont own a RBP true, I do test a lot of laptops and I do want to warn that Razer laptops arent really what they seem. They do have fundamental design flaws. Just praising it while not being exactly an expert on the matter and hardly stressing the machine is dangerous for users that do. I was actually in the market for a Razer laptop in the past but after all the research, testing and issues with customer support I decided to send my test unit back. No more Razer for me. Excellent build quality of the chassis, piss poor parts on the motherboard. CHeap Transcend memory solder on, cheap heatsinks, too hot thermals, cheap batteries. While still having a high asking price.

 

Thanks for your opinion. I can name multiple YouTube reviewers who have tested the RBP and love it. I don't see them in here because this is not the forum for that or for yours either.


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No review has ever tested those machines long term. They are fine for the first months.

I give you another example, Gigabyte had a **** ton of bad laptops. Really bad, not in terms of specs, But they where unreliable as hell. All those laptops scored high grades on notebookcheck.net which is kinda the most in depth notebook review site on the whole web. Also those youtube reviews hardly cover thermals. We all know how bad the thermals were on the Blade 14 series.

 

i have a RBP, love it, plays great. no problemo. complainers gonna complain.

 

How are the mechanical keys on this? I heard they are uneven, and 65 grams instead of the typical 45 grams on Cherry MX Reds, and such.

 

Some say they're unbalanced and bad, others claim they are good. It's subjective. Though one thing is objective - it's not pure mechanical - it's a hybrid between mechanical and scissor.

 

From what the razer website show, it's more like a big button switch instead of a mechanical switch. Hmm..

 

Well better pray you never need to make use of their support. Because they screw you over and the 4000usd you paid for it.

 

Hence why I said it's a hybrid of sorts. The Y910 mech switches are more in line with actual mech keyboards.

 

Long term! The machine been out for about 3 months for goodness sakes! However yes some of them have reviewed it after using it for 2 weeks to a month which in this instance qualifies as long term. The point I am making is, start your own thread please do not hijack this one because you don't like this laptop. Thanks.

 

I have been using laptops for decades and some really high-end ones, from Alienware, Razer and Origin PC just to name a few. This keyboard is the most enjoyable one that I have ever used!

 

There is somebody that will say this about every single computer building company in existence, so again what is your point?! How is this helpful?

 

Sorry to burst your bubble but on the support quality thread, razer is listed as the absolute worst in the industry. Tis' how it is.

 

Its a public forum and a discussion thread. Everyone is allowed to discuss these machines, It is true that just bashing something is unwanted. But arguments are brought to the table here. And no 1 month is not long term. People to this day still have unresolved issues with their Razer Blade which Razer refuses to fix, those are after a longer period of use. So caution is advised.

 

Similar to their Ornata keyboard. They say its hybrid mech. But its actually just a dome switch with a metal clip to give it that mechanical feel. Its still a membrame with the downsides.

 

Just got my RBP yesterday. I've played a bunch of Battlefront and GTA V and am extremely happy so far. On the boot screen I can notice a tiny bit of screen bleed, but nothing to worry about. The keyboard is a bit weird to me, but I'm not used to mechanical keyboards, so hopefully I get used to it. It's a bit weird with it being off-center like it is too, but again, nothing I'm worried about. It'll just take getting used to. I do really like the touchpad on it, much better than my Gigabyte.

The screen looks amazing, I have to say. This is my first 4k computer screen and I've noticed some scaling issues with Origin and Battlefront, but I guess that's EA's problem.

I can't decide if I'm hoping it breaks in the first 14 days so I can just return it or if I hope it stays good so I can keep it. It seems like one of those things that's amazing while it's working, but the potential for breaking is always looming overhead. The problem is there's nothing else like it on the market. The thickest I'm willing to go is the Alienware 17, but that's pushing it, and even then there's been lots of problems with that too. I see people talking about the MSI's, but then I've also heard there's bloatware on them. Then of course there's Clevo's, but my experience with the build quality with them hasn't been the greatest. I've owned several and had hinges break on a few and seen friends have hinges break. The materials aren't what I'd call premium feeling either. The keyboards and trackpads leave a lot to be desired as well. Then, of course, is the fact that they tend to be on the chunky side. Tough decisions...

 

You are clearly missing the point of this thread: Ownership Lounge of the RBP. Not what laptop should I buy. This is my point, so please go make a thread about how louse you think Razer is in customer service or in product development, because as you said you are allowed to discuss your opinion. Just try and stay on point in this thread, please.

 

As I just stated, wrong discussion for this thread.

 

What I learned is no matter how hard you bashed something in the end it's a matter of personal preference, it's like having a girlfriend and your family or friends call her ugly but to you she's the most beautiful thing in the world.

What I'm saying is that if you don't like the thing then stay away from it. The only reason why I was here it's because I'm giving Razer a peak and was curious as to why they are so popular nowadays from their peripherals to laptops and it's Linus preferred on the go laptop too! See? Even the most tech savvy person; who built some crazy desktop specs, reviewed different brands of laptops, and he preferred Razer? So there must be something with Razer laptops that got his attention and I don't think that Razer is sponsoring him either for praising the brand.

 

Getting very off-topic here but Linus' preference for Razer Blade 14s is entirely based on form - he does NOT use them for gaming almost at all and the work he does is office so he is not pushing the device at all which mitigates a lot of the issues - it's loud, thermal throttles, has cheap chokes and mosfets which have a history of randomly dying due to overload and he is always sent a cherry-picked sample by Ming Tang. Though do note - Linus does not touch Razer peripherals and is extremely harsh on their audio tech and frequently advises against them - as a whole, his view is mostly based on treating the laptops as ultra-books rather than gaming laptops.

On-topic, we are NOT bashing - we are cautioning potential buyers of known issues and caveats - and everything is backed up by proof, testing and multiple sources even this very forum/organization so yeah. As much as some people like to call anyone who doesn't agree with them a "hater", fact of the matter is that every machine has its downsides and for 2000-4000$, Razer laptops have one too many.

 

not true. had RMAs with my first two Razer products, was easy peasy.

 

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a fair point bro, but if only Razer will step up, upgrade their cooling system and probably thickening their chassis a little bit, and have at least a i7-6820HK + it's own current PROS I think they will beat the **** out of any current BGA laptop available in the market.

 

Mhmmmmm...

 

If they fix their abysmal customer support, get their 1080 to at least beat 1070s rather than lose to OCed 1070 laptops and improve their electronic components (there is no excuse for cheap mosfets and caps considering those are vital to a machine's durability and longevity, especially when asking 4000$ for it. Also work on their QA/QC a bit, then yes. The RBP has potential. But sadly, that will never happen and in its current form I can't bring myself to recommend it over a GT73 or AW17 or Clevo. Again, not hating - stating objective findings of the community.

 

have the correspondence to back it up, my first RMA was even cross-shipped to me as I returned the defective Blade. Then my issue with the Razer Edge, also resolved in less than a week's time.

 

Was the RMA within the first 2 weeks of purchase?

 

Your case cannot be used as a benchmark for all cases. A lot are still waiting for a working replacement. Check other threads at this forum.

 

I'm just speaking from my personal experience, and in my experience it was hassle free, easier than dell and hp who i've also had dealings with. dell was by far the worst.

 

Agreed, never had an issue with Razer support or the RBP 2016. They also sent me a Recovery USB for free which I used to re-install after removing the RAID 0. I had no performance issues, just prefer to run each SSD as it's own drive.

Gaming on a 2k external monitor I don't notice any difference from my gtx1080 Desktop or Razer Blade Pro 2016, still get around the same FPS and great overall graphics. Gaming directly on the laptop screen at 4k I average over 85 fps which is something I never expected. Real world experience is worth a million "benchmarks."

 

Nor can yours.

 

It still only performs on par with a 1070gtx laptop with a mild overclock and under the peformance of a desktop 1070gtx. Still a good performing gpu. But if they shipped it with a larger psu and no bios limots it would perform about 10 to 15% better. Its still a 4000usd laptop. For that money i would expect every inch to be perfect. Its only 2mm~ thinner than the aw17 and aorus x7 offerings so that premium price isnt bwcause of the thinnes and the build quality is similar (except for cheaper transcend soldered on memory and mosfets) on the rbp. I do hope for you that wont have issues with it.

I point to hundreds of online cases. Not my personal experience. Also i point to design flaws.

 

Now that I think about it - can anyone test something? Shine a light on the bottom with the cover removed - can you see it through the keyboard? Asking since the 14 had holes through the whole machine for some reason and those would allow stuff to make its way down from the keyboard onto the motherboard.

 

It's over 7mm thinner than the Alienware 17 (22.5mm vs 29.9mm). Stated another way, the Alienware is almost 33% thicker than the RBP. That's a significant difference.

The Aorus also runs hotter than the RBP and, in my experience, significantly lower build quality from the Gigabyte/Aorus brand. Running really hot fried the battery in my Gigabyte, so I'm okay with the slight downclock for lower temps, though I would have preferred they just went with a 1070. I'm sure there are several people who just buy them because then they can say they have a 1080, though, so I can see why they did it.

You've seen hundreds of online cases of problems with the RBP? That's the specific computer this thread is about.

 

I would but I don't have small enough torx bits to get the bottom cover off.

 

The official NBR guide puts Razer's customer support in a separate tier at the absolute bottom and heavily encourages the use of intermediaries - there is a reason for that.

Also - the AW also runs much quieter and cooler. With a proper repaste, we've seen as low as 70* max with the CPU @ 4GHz under a stress test - RBP goes to 85*-90*C

 

Yes, but that depends on whether you win the lottery and get one that was pasted properly. Some people in the Alienware thread were seeing up to 100C on their brand new units, and that's not to mention the uneven core temps. I don't think I should have to repaste a brand new laptop and modify one of the arms on the heatsink.

 

Ah, but you are no longer correct. The issue you are referring to has been resolved last month. All units made in 2017 are reporting thermals around 80*C max for stock paste with no more uneven thermals. And noise is still significantly lower than the RBP.

 

I don't think the uneven core temp problem was fixed. I think you still have to bend the arm on the heatsink to even them out.

 

That's why he's been telling you to gather informations, it's been also mentioned where to look.

Razer's got one of the worst CS in the notebook field atm, facts tell that, every forum you go, even their one or their CEO's twitter is full of people complaining, while it's normally not as bad with other brands, and Razer is pretty small too.

What I see is people fanboying at their new expensive toy, denying every FACT just to be happier.

I'm not saying RBP is bad, I'd prolly buy one too if I had the money and the need to, the much I love my RB14 probably, but still I can't deny that they are bad, they use bad parts and their warranty is crap cause those are facts. I got myself an extended warranty to avoid said problems and made sure certain known flaws wouldn't kill my notebook (again).

Problems are there, why deny them? Accept them and live happy with your brand new toy, it's surely awesome, but it's got flaws, just like anything else.

 

Not all

AW still has manufacturing variance and QC problems allowing out bad paste, bad fitment, and missing / wrong thermal pads as reported in the Core Temp Differential Thread, and the good news is - many are reporting excellent results out of the box, just not all.

All laptop makers have problems, you just need to learn what to look for unique to the problems of the laptop you want, evaluate your new laptop quickly when purchased, then take appropriate actions if it's not up to your acceptance criteria.

Razer makes "cool" stuff, it just runs "hot"

 

The arm bending was to compensate for a too thick thermal tape used on the part being compressed. Replacing the thermal tape with 1/2 thickness allows the heatplate to clamp down completely and make contact with the CPU, so both "halves" of the CPU IHS meet and transfer heat equally.

AW is shipping new builds with that tape, and new thermal paste that isn't stamped on - instead it's manually applied with the correct amount.

Variance in assembler experience and lack of 100% QC for every laptop is allowing failures still, but much less than before.

 

I'm not denying anything. If you've read my previous posts, you'd see that I've said I do have concerns over the reportedly bad customer support from Razer. At the end of the day, the other laptop I was considering (AW17) was having far more manufacturing issues and I wasn't willing to go any thicker than that.

I just take issue with the people who've had positive experiences being marginalized because somebody else had a different experience. My point was that while you can't draw a conclusion based on one positive experience, you also can't draw one based on one negative experience. Sure, there have been a lot of negative experiences, but you still have to accept the whole and not reject experiences people have had on any one side of the spectrum. That's what makes an average. There have been a handful of people rejecting positive experiences in this thread.

So far, the only problem I've seen with the RBP specifically (that's what this thread is about, not Razer Blades or Razer Blade Stealths) has been, seemingly, down to the Raid 0 (even that mosfet video talks about it, with one of the drives running hotter than the other and thermal throttling, causing the other to slow as well because of the array). If I do end up keeping mine after my 2 week return window is closed, I'll probably get rid of the Raid 0 and use the first as my C drive and the second as a D drive with all my libraries on it. The consensus seems to be that this should fix the problem.

 

Thanks for the objectivity you've brought to the thread. It's much appreciated.

I did do quite a bit of research before pulling the trigger, and am by no means a Razer fanboy. It seems like this generation of gaming laptops has been one big compromise no matter which one you select. The MSI GT series seems to be the only ones without issues (that I've seen, anyway) this time around, but they're just too thick for my tastes.

 

No no - they are in a completely different dimension too my friend, just a closer one to us real folks, still other dimension tho.

 

Not at all - they changed the pad height causing the problem to be mostly solved.

 

That's news to me. I didn't see mention to it in the owners' thread. Thanks.

 

I have tested 5 different AW17R4's with 6820/6700 and 1080/1070 and they would all hit over 100c and thermal throttle out of the box, my RBP has never come close to those temps.

 

If that was in 2016 then it is irrelevant - the issues you are referring to have been fixed and discussed - and the Blade's GPU is power limited. if it were unlocked, it would easily go over 100*C.

 

That was in January of 2017 and the issues are real.. so far not a single problem with the RBP. Also we are talking about the CPU not GPU...

 

The Dellienware Tripod Cpu heatsink mess continues. Even with the Kaby refresh. AW ceo Mr. Azor guaranteed that these AWBook's temp problem was fixed as of 12/07/16. Aka before Kaby was used. But this do not absolve that RBP has its own design flaws http://www.notebookcheck.com/Test-Alienware-15-R3-Laptop.194724.0.html

Edit: Info for Razer owners http://www.notebookcheck.net/Specia...an-aims-to-fix-what-Razer-can-t.195612.0.html